Brotherhood is an American television drama series created by Blake Masters about the intertwining lives of the Irish-American Caffee brothers from Providence, Rhode Island: Tommy is a local politician and Michael is a professional criminal involved with New England's Irish Mob.
The series is about the underlying bond between two brothers who are torn between their fierce loyalty to each other and their family, and their ambition for power and control on opposing sides of the law.
The story is set in a decaying Irish working-class neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island, USA and follows the conflict between Tommy and Michael Caffee. Tommy is a well-intended but backroom-dealing local politician and Michael is a career criminal.
As the story unfolds, State Representative Tommy tries to keep his family out of harm's way when his brother Michael comes back into town after seven years on the run from the FBI.
Upon his return, Michael sets out on a vengeful, often murderous path to reclaim his turf on The Hill.
Emboldened rival gang boss Freddie Cork still holds a firm grip on the underworld activities in the community and will stop at nothing in order to secure backroom deals for sweetheart city contracts.
For Tommy Caffee, the answer to protecting his brother Michael's back is sometimes going to the state house or calling in a favor from city hall. Compromising, coercing and responding to threats are a way of life for him as he struggles to protect his brother and constituency at the same time.
Tommy finds it difficult to balance all this with the true loves of his life - his three daughters and wife Eileen. A loving mother and wife in the close-knit community where she grew up, Eileen is deeply unhappy. Although she truly loves Tommy, she feels trapped, and lashes out in more ways than one.
Tommy's lust for power in the political realm is paralleled with Michael in the criminal world.
With all of his crooked intentions and faults, Michael is still the apple of his mother Rose's eye. As the elder son, she still holds Michael slightly closer to her heart because of how he helped raise Tommy after she kicked out their abusive, alcoholic father.
In the everybody-knows-everybody world of The Hill, state policeman Declan Giggs is another key character. He also grew up with the Caffee brothers and although his job is to keep tabs on Michael's underworld dealings and nail him at the right time, Giggs is in a constant predicament because of his strong ties to people he grew up with, criminals included.
Each episode explores these disparate worlds of politicians and mob bosses and looks at how gray good and evil can be. Family is at the heart of the major relationships for the Caffee brothers and their extended family members.
Their path is a minefield of shifting alliances, leaving the brothers constantly in doubt about who they can trust.
Broadcast Notes
Brotherhood premiered in South Africa on M-Net on 14 December, 2006. It was moved to actionX for the second season, but the third season never aired on the channel. Season 3 first aired on a later run of the show on SABC3.